One of life’s pleasures for me, and for many of you out there, is finding a favourite café to sit in. What makes it a favourite can depend on many things – location, the coffee, the food, the staff. For me it is somewhere where you don’t feel rushed, and to sit for half an hour reading is perfectly acceptable. As many regular readers know, one of my favourite places to go is Squirrel. There is something about this place that I really like, and not just the toasts and the fact that they fill up my teapot with more hot water without me even having to ask.
Squirrel was two years old on Saturday, so I made a point of going for my re-Pilates visit. The sun was shining, and I had a glorious walk along the waterfront to get there. The doorway was decorated with a shiny streamer curtain, and there was quite a festive air in the place.
There were party hats and balloons, doughnuts on offer, staff dressed for the occasion, and of course, the usual flowers on every table. I was there early, but the place was already buzzing, which was lovely to see. In fact, I couldn’t get my favourite table, but what did that matter?
I ordered my tea and a smoked salmon toast which came piled high with microgreens, and sat and read until it was time to walk to Pilates. For a lot of you, going to a café is probably not yet possible, so I hope you have enjoyed this little visit to one of my favourite places in town.
Thanks to Natalie for hosting the Weekend Coffee Share, where bloggers from all over come to share their stories.
You can find Thistles and Kiwis on Facebook, and also on Instagram@thistleandkiwis. As for Twitter….am totally inactive these days. If you want to get in touch, email me on thistlesandkiwis@gmail.com
Thistles and Kiwis 
How I enjoyed going with you to Squirrel. Looks like a wonderful place. Piled with greens is right. Happy birthday, Squirrel!
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I LOVE your cafe! Happy birthday Squirrel! I am meeting you through weekend coffee share. I want what you had for breakfast, looks scrumptious!! What a wonderful place to relax and read, the photos are perfect! Enjoy your weekend! ~Diana
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Thank you! Hope your weekend is going well too.
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I have been ‘out’ for tea once only in recent months – it felt marvellously liberating and adventurous. The odd tea with friends at home keeps me sustained in the meanwhile 🙂
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Seems to be a really nice place and I am happy you can enjoy it there again. Coffeehouses and restaurants in Germany have been closed for nearly 6 months now 🙁. As the incidence is 165 currently this won’t change soon …
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New Zealand closed the borders early on last year which helped us to get back to ‘normal’ but the threat is still there….
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It does look like a great place. My favourite cafe was Little & Friday in their original north shore location. Sadly that’s no more, and the Ponsonby and Newmarket cafes just don’t have the same vibe.
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I remember that name – didn’t they have a cookbook? It is sad when our favourite cafes move or close down.
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They have a few books now. Kim Evans, who started the cafe, has a really interesting story. The original location was in an old block of shops that had all closed down in the middle of a state housing area. The whole area has been bowled and “redeveloped.”
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Happy 2nd birthday to Squirrel! It looks like a lovely café. Thank you for sharing the special occasion with us. #Weekendcoffeeshare
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Looks delicious and I love the name of the cafe.
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Wellington certainly has a vibrant cafe scene, and there are a few in Tauranga that I love to frequent. Not too often, or else it’s not as enjoyable and not too mention expensive.
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Yes the city does have a lot of cafes to try out!
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What a great atmosphere for a little café i could imagine if you worked there it would be a positive experience. The food looks SOOO delicious. That was great hanging out with you, my breakfast time as I read this is truly inspired now. Have a wonderful week my friend.
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Thank you for your kind words and hope you have a wonderful week too.
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I miss sitting in coffee shops reading or even working. Haven’t done it in over a year. It’s so good that you’re able to do it. Coffee shops are open but I don’t yet feel comfortable going to one. Hopefully soon.
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Hi T&K, our coffee shops are starting to open and I do have a favorite one. It’s not fancy but more home style, very comfortable and such. Our restaurants, on the other hand, are more open than even a week ago so we’re making progress and yesterday I met a couple of high school friends at my favorite mexican joint. They make the most amazing burrito but yesterday I ordered something different and wonderful. We sat there and ate, laughed and talked for over 3 hours. The waitress was wonderfully friendly and fun and took great care of us.
I will never take such times for granted ever again. Good to know that NZ is coming back to normal too.
Blessings
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Glad you are able to get out and about. We came out of Level 3 Lockdown at the end of May last year, so we have been going to restaurants, cafes, bars for ages. Life here is almost normal (masks on public transport) and has been for months with the odd blip here and there. Our government shut the borders early, and we went into an early hard lockdown which helped.
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I love a cozy cafe….That smoked salmon toast looks amazing, and how fun they decorated for their anniversary.
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Really relateble I just started my own travel blog and then covid hit and I could not travel anymore from my country. No travel planning for me at all 😦
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